Comfort

Our Staff

Jeff TillerPrincipal Investigator

Jeff is the Principal Investigator on the grant from the State Energy Office that orinially funded the Alliance. Jeff is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment, in which he has been a faculty member since 1995 and also works with the Appalachian Energy Center. Tiller served as chairperson of the department from 2010 through 2015. One of Jeff’s current projects is directing the development of the North Carolina State Energy Plan.

Prior to moving to North Carolina, Jeff was co-founder and served as President of Southface Energy Institute, a non-profit corporation in Atlanta, Georgia. Jeff has conducted hundreds of seminars, courses, workshops and presentations on energy conservation and solar energy applications in residential and commercial buildings. He has also written numerous Builders’ Guides on high performance construction for various southeastern states, as well as several other well-known publications.

Jeff is a licensed Mechanical Engineer, a LEED-accredited professional, and a RESNET-certified HERS Rater. When not working, Jeff enjoys being outdoors, traveling, attending live music, cycling, and playing soccer. He has two sons and lives in Boone with his wife, Ingrid.

Chuck PerryProgram Manager

Chuck Perry is the Program Director for the North Carolina Energy Efficiency Alliance. He has 25 years of experience in residential new home industry and over the years he has developed a passion for high performance construction and sharing better building practices with homebuilders statewide.

Chuck has worked in a variety of construction settings from “hands-on” in the field, to volume operations, to running his own small business. As production manager of a Raleigh-based construction company, Chuck led efforts to incorporate high performance construction such as ENERGY STAR Qualified and NAHB Green Certified homes into the business model. As NCEEA Program Director, he enjoys collaborating with industry stakeholders and other homebuilders to raise awareness and consumer demand for certified high performance homes.

Chuck is a graduate of East Carolina University and a licensed contractor in the state of North Carolina. He has served as vice-chair of the Green Home Builders of the Triangle and appointee to the North Carolina Association of Home Builders Green Building Council. He is a certified NAHB Green Builder, Building Performance Institute Building Analyst and President of the High Country Home Builders Association. In his spare time he enjoys cycling, mountain climbing and playing in the dirt.

Janet MillerProgram Coordinator

Janet Miller is the NCEEA Program Coordinator. She recently earned her Master of Science in Building Science from Appalachian State University in May 2012. Janet worked for the NCEEA as a Graduate Assistant during school providing outreach on the goals, trainings, and current events of the NCEEA. Her research project and area of interest focused on energy efficiency outreach and promoting behavior change towards energy conservation in the home.

Janet also works for the Appalachian Energy Center coordinating a series of workshops related to renewable energy and building science. The series offers continuing education and training opportunities for professionals to stay current on energy related topics. Janet has done freelance AutoCad design work for over 20 years.

Janet has lived in Boone for 28 years, loves the mountains, spends her free time on the trail, and is raising two teenagers.

Joseph Crocker

Joseph Crocker is a full time building science faculty member at Appalachian State University in the Department of Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment where he teaches courses on Construction Technology, Building Codes, Building Science, Mechanical Systems, and Architectural Drafting. Joseph has worked as a Research Analyst for the Appalachian Energy Center since 2000 working on research projects related to energy efficiency and green building. He has taught numerous Energy Code Workshops across the state, always receiving exceptional instructor evaluations.